Shipping Song Drabbles
by Rayri
Summary: Oh snap! 100-200 word drabbles for ten songs taken randomly off my IPod, all fitting a certain pairing.   Pairings: Sherry/Aki Placido/Lucciano Aporia/Paradox
1. Aki and Sherry

Song Drabbles: Aki/Sherry

AN: Hey, all! Wrote this cause I had spare time. Warning for OOCness – it's really hard to make some of these songs work. Just a note – these songs take place in different parts of the timeline, and some are AUish, too. Also, in my headcanon, Carly's roommate is human!Asla Piscu. Fuck yeah hummingbirds! :D Feel free to suggest pairings or songs – these are from shuffle on my IPod! Song 8 is a reminder of why NEVER to let your brother pick sync songs, but velociraptor!Aki was so much fun that I might just have to write more of it.

There's a really wide variety of songs here! :D Feel free to suggest songs or pairings - although I mostly prefer femslash, I'll write slash and het, too 3

Song One: Part II: Tonight's The Night – Ludo (140 Words)

Sherry's death had been hard, to say the least. It wouldn't have been easy under any circumstance, and aboard Ylliaster's homeland, by her own hands…Aki could hardly take it. She spent nights brooding over it – _I never even got to tell her how I felt! –_ and one night, it came to her – _if Ylliaster could change the future, why can't I? _Sherry hadn't been cautious – she hadn't been scared, but fear was what kept people safe – but that didn't mean things couldn't be changed. There were cards which could warp time, after all…and she was hardly short on money.

It took time before she was ready, but one night she stood there, on a cliff overlooking the raging sea, alone except for Black Rose, holding the card she had worked so hard to get – _Time Wizard_. Tonight was the night.

Song Two: Starstruck – Lady Gaga (169)

_My dad would _kill _me if he saw me here_, Aki thought to herself. She had no problems with visiting clubs. It wasn't like Firelily was too high on alcohol anyways, at least for a club in the district – it was a pretty strange place, very local. Mostly music and dancing, although she'd heard they had strippers some nights. She didn't care. Honestly, she just went to Firelily for the drinks. They didn't care that her fake ID was fake, it was a good enough fake, and they'd take it. Some nights, she would find herself dancing around with other girls, and she didn't really care that much. Not normally.

Normally, she didn't find herself pressed up against Sherry LeBlanc.

The woman looked so different when she wasn't working. She'd gotten a little more casual since Ylliaster, but she was still dead serious. But here, casual, dressed in a matter that was fun and almost flirty, long hair unkempt, she was amazing.

Aki had never been quite so starstruck.

Song Three: I Climb – Thousand Foot Krutch (194)

Everything seemed so serene about Aki. No one would've ever guessed that she cried herself to sleep over dumb teenage things, love and wanting and confusion all wrapped up into one nice little ball. Or at least, it seemed like no one ever would.

"Aki, are you alright?" Sherry asked. "You seem a bit glum."

Aki nodded unconvincingly. "I'm fine, Sher, really, I'm – mmmmph!" Sherry embraced Aki, pulling her close. She was surprisingly strong, and Aki wouldn't have been able to break free if she wanted to.

"Aki, it's okay, I'm here for you."

_Please, please, just let her say she loves me. Everything would be alright she did, god, I'd give anything, I don't need to be anybody, just please – _

"Aki, I do love you, but you might want to work on thinking inside your head." The redhead girl blushed and looked like she was about to speak when she found Sherry's lips upon her own.

Later that night, she sat, wondering, but no – she wouldn't deny it, she _loved _Sherry, and she wasn't afraid of that, she had made her bed and she was more than happy to go lay in it.

Song 4: Over and Over – Three Days Grace (163)

Sherry _knew _Aki didn't love her – the girl was so besotted with Yusei it was almost painful to behold – but she just couldn't quit her, couldn't quit wanting her. Nothing ever changed, just a monotony of wanting what she couldn't have – no matter how hard she tried not to, she just fell for the girl all over again.

It was hardly Aki's fault that she was so beautiful – hardly her fault that she had that soft, fiery, _sexy _red hair, that she had that uplifting, beautiful voice, that she had that wonderful figure and those bright golden eyes.

No, Sherry knew it would be best for her to move on, find some other cute girl – she had gotten the number of that one cute girl with the orange hair and the orange eyes and the orange dress just last night, when she'd been out drinking – but she couldn't. She'd rather waste her time on the one girl she knew she could never have.

Song 5: Falling Inside the Black – Skillet (137)

It was so easy to remember Sherry back before, kind and strong, a bastion of strength, every touch soft and beautiful and exactly what she had needed. But – no, Sherry was gone, a servant of Ylliaster, and she couldn't get her back. Everything was dark now. Yusei had tried to comfort her, and Jack, and even _Carly_, even Carly's goddamn freak of a roommate tried to pretend she understood what it was like.

_None of them do! _Aki told herself, _not one of them understands this! _One night, she hopped on her duel wheel, drove far away from anywhere, to the place where Sherry had disappeared, and stood there, shouting her name until her throat was hoarse and the sun sat on the edge of the horizons. But no – Sherry couldn't hear her screaming, couldn't hear Aki.

Song 6: Love Me Dead – Ludo (Black Rose!Aki and Ylliaster!Sherry) (150)

They were quite possibly the best matched couple in the world, and easily the worst matched as well. Sherry couldn't deny that Aki wasn't wonderful for her when she was so overworked by Jose and Paradox and Z-ONE and whoever else decided to shove their stupid menial work on her, couldn't deny that the girl knew just how to comfort her and hold her, that the girl wasn't sexy and beautiful and graceful and every other wonderful thing, yet…

She was so aggressive, so needy, so fakey, wearing her down to bones in bed (at times it almost felt like she was quite literally, when she brought out one of her vined, disgusting duel monsters to "help"). Loving her dead. She was awful, and yet Sherry loved her; she was hideous, with her strange mask and her obsession with flame and her disgusting nature, but she was so, _so _sexy.

Song 7: Waking Up In Vegas – Katy Perry (155)

"Okay, what the _fuck _happened last night?" Sherry didn't swear often, but she sure knew how to. "Where _are _we? I don't remember buying a motel room…"

"Yeah, cause I totally have any clue what's going. I woke up hung over and in bed with you, so don't you get –"

"_What?_"

"You're wearing my dress, by the way." Aki sighed. "I think when we were out gambling with Carly and her roommate, we started drinking, and, well…I don't know. I'll call Carly. We never should have agreed to come with on this trip."

Carly's roommate picked up – immediately obvious because of her _creepy deep voice. _"Oh, hey! You two got really drunk, and you had us buy you a motel room. We're a floor down from you, room 213. Oh, and I'm pretty sure you two fucked!"

Aki hung up, not wanting to hear any more.

"Well, I've got good news, and bad news…"

Song 8: Carnivores from the Cretaceous Period (Velociraptor!Aki and Sherry)(174)

The alpha was a lovely beast, with sharp fangs and a fast gate and beautiful feathers, perfect for hiding her from the nastier beasts dwelling near their hunting grounds. Aki had to appreciate it – and hunt all the harder for it. It would soon be time for breeding, and when that came along, she most desperately wanted to be the strongest candidate, a mix of emotions and thoughts and instincts.

They'd been having their kills scavenged off of by a troublemaking Troodon recently, and it hardly took her long to dispatch the poor creature, bringing it to Sherry, a glint in her eyes.

_Please love me_.

Some time later, when it was time for clutching, there was some general befuddlement about the lack of a clutch from the alpha and her precious mate. But no one was going to try to mess with the creature – no one in their right mind would, not with their bond, and not with how capable it proved itself.

It was a simple life. It was a good life.

Song 9: Lithium – Evanescence (Ylliaster!Sherry)(154)

Sherry didn't really love Aki, but when she was drunk enough, they could pretend.

It wasn't healthy for either of them, no, but Aki was too besotted to care at first, and by the time everything began to fall apart, she was too committed to let go. Sherry's devotion to Ylliaster made it even worse, with her always gone, working on some disgusting project to maim and harm others. Aki kept trying to let Sherry go, to find someone better for her – Carly was pretty enough, and there were plenty of other girls out there – but she couldn't. She was too afraid to be alone, to not keep feeling love and affection, fake as it was.

It was a terrifyingly broken relationship, and she could hardly hold onto it, hardly hold on to herself, her own needs. She just wanted to stay in love with Sherry, no matter the cost. No matter the brokenness.

Song 10: Check Yes Juliet – We The Kings (201)

Aki sat in her bedroom, brushing her hair quietly. As rich as her father was, she hated some of it – the arranged marriage, especially. All she wanted was Sherry, Sherry LeBlanc, and it wasn't like she was even from a poor family! No, she suspected her father just objected to her love for another girl, and –

The sound of a rock hitting startled her out of her thoughts. Below her window stood Sherry, leaning against her D-Wheel, another rock in her hands.

"Aki, I'm not going anywhere till you get your ass out here." She grinned. "And put on your riding shoes. We're ditching this town! I've got a connection in a little town far away from here, he's a hell of a weird kid, but I worked with him and he's one of the most reliable people I've met."

Aki nodded. She changed into decent clothes before rushing out the door to meet her lover – _her _lover, in defiance of her parents. They couldn't change her mind or her heart!

"Come on, Aki. We've got a long, long ways to go and not too long. But as long as we have each other, and our decks, there's no stopping us!"


	2. Lucciano and Placido

A.N: Sorry this took so long. I lost my iPod before I could get my songlist! Today's shipping is Placido/Lucciano because no one suggested anything. If no one suggests anything for next time it's going to be some het pairing I like...maybe Scoopshipping or Invitationshipping. I used the last names Garcia for Placido and Rossi for Lucciano. Because I like those last names.

1, 2, 3, and 9 aren't AU. 1 is prior to the show, 2 after, and 3 and 9 during. Not in the same timeline though xP  
>4, 5, 6, 8, and 10 are all AUs without the apocalypse. 8 features agedup!singlemom!fem!Placido.<br>7 archaeopteryx AU

Lucciano and Placido are three years apart, with Lucciano 14 during the Ylliaster story arc.

EDIT: FFnet ate my quotation marks! D:

Song 1: When in Doubt – Thousand Foot Krutch

"Calm down, Lucciano." Placido sighed. "What's wrong?"

"Why are we even doing all of this?" Lucciano asked. "The end's inevitable anyways. It feels like everything is just fighting and struggling for a stupid unavoidable change." Placido sighed and ruffled the younger Emperor's hair quietly.

"Because we are. I mean, why would we just roll over? It's better to at least make an effort. My sister would have wanted that. Your parents would have wanted that." He wrapped his arms around Lucciano, prepared to deal with the waterworks that seemed to accompany him whenever his parents were mentioned, but they never came.

"Yeah. Yeah, I guess you're right. "He smiled – the first time Placido had seen him smile, and it was honestly quite a charming smile. "I kind of like it when you hold me like this." Placido blushed and looked like he was about to say something – when a kiss interrupted him, a kiss from the strange and charming and now weirdly assertive Lucciano.

If this was how Lucciano was going to change well, he had absolutely no problem with that.

Song 2: Valentine's Day – Linkin Park

Placido was _not _dead. Lucciano might have seen the corpse, might have buried him himself on this little, unreachable cliff, but today was Valentine's Day, and Placido had _promised _they would spend it together.

Lucciano hadn't had an easy time with his Placido's death – he wouldn't have in any situation, and it didn't help that Jose was gone, and Z-ONE, and everyone else he'd ever been close to.

He sat on the ground where Placido was buried, just sat there, waiting – waiting for something to happen to make him _care_. Remembering the times they'd had. Eventually, one particular one came to mind.

_Hey, Placido, why do you work so hard to try to speed up the circuit? Jose said it wouldn't do any good. _

_If you want something to happen, you've gotta help it happen._

Lucciano blinked and grabbed his shovel.

It was almost a month before anyone else found the place – and a small child, dead, snuggled against a rotting corpse.

Song 3: Lovegame – Lady Gaga

_"Placido_," Lucciano whined, "I'm _bored_."

"You've been saying that for like an hour, Lucciano. How about you just Google some random shit?"

"But Placido!" Lucciano whined. He paused, seemingly lost in thought for a couple moments. Then blinked. "Ooooh, I have an idea!"

"What?" Probably murdering people.

"Let's have sex!" He was grinning widely now.

"What."

"Placido I wanna have some _fun_, and I don't want to die a _virgin_," Lucciano whined. "The internet says I'm right, right here~" He ported his iPad (why the hell did Lucciano even have an iPad?) over to Placido.

"The fuck is Rule 99.1, L –" He was cut off by Lucciano suddenly appearing on his lap. The boy quickly wrapped his arms around Placido, closing the gap between their lips. He wasn't exactly experienced – it occurred to Placido that there was a pretty good chance this was Lucciano's first time making out with someone, never mind the sex – and he smiled softly.

"I guess if you want a good time, Lucciano, I'll give you one."

Song 4: Dark Blue – Jack's Mannequin

Lucciano was just another quiet little kid just entering his sixth grade class, assigned to a 9th grader who probably didn't give two shits about him. The room was crowded, he was lonely and scared, and said 9th grader – Placido Garcia – wouldn't have been surprised if the poor boy had started crying.

"Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Lucciano blinked. The 9th grader had grabbed his hand. "Um, I guess I'm, just, kind of scared? I mean, I know Principal Jose said there's a really friendly environment here, but I keep hearing about bullying, and –"

"I'll tell you the truth – the principal lied. I got it worse than most, so I'm not the right person to ask about how bad it usually is, but –"

"Why did everyone treat you bad?"

"Well, I was pretty nerdy, but I also came out as gay in 6th." He smiled. "I was trying to date this girl, Melissa, but it just wasn't working out and yeah."

"Oh," Lucciano squeaked. "S-so they treat gay people really bad?"

"...yeah. Not in high school, or at least not as bad in high school, I hear, but it's pretty hard here."

"Oh." Placido glanced at the boy. He looked worried, and –

"Is everything alright?" one of the orientation chaperones (a math teacher) walked over.

"He's not feeling well. May I take him to the nurse's office?" Placido smiled. He had a very good record with most of the teachers in the middle school.

"Of course, Placido!"

As soon as they were into the empty hallway, Placido pulled Lucciano aside.

"You're gay, aren't you?"

Lucciano nodded, clinging to him and then looking up, gazing into the other boy's face with his _dreamy emerald eyes and adorably red_ – Placido's line of thought was broken when Lucciano reached up on his tiptoes and kissed him.

Song 5: Part I: Broken Bride – Ludo

Lucciano couldn't believe it when he heard – Man Dead in Motorcycle Crash on the news, just minutes after it had happened, and he had to admit, he was a bit worried for his Placido – his husband. God that was going to be hard to get used to. Starting up the clip available (taken from a security camera, he suspected), he watched in absolute horror. There Placido was, on his precious T-666, where he had been hit by a semi.

"Oh god, what the fucking hell, this can't be real, it's just a dream, it's just a dream, it's – oh my god, we just got married a couple weeks ago, I can't lose him, not now, no, god no!"

He'd rushed to the scene of the accident, shown them his ID, they'd let him see the crash, the corpse – shattered glass and splattered blood and oh god, that was his_ Placido _right there, oh god.

"This can't be happening, this isn't happening, I won't let this happen!" They led him away from the body – mumblings of "I'm sorry, but we need you to leave now" but he couldn't hear – he was too deep in his head, too deep in his formulating.

All he needed to do was break time, after all. It couldn't possibly be _that_ hard.

Song 6: Topeka – Ludo

"Shit." Placido sighed. He'd stopped at a gas station, checked out his car, and noticed that the catalytic converter was broken. "I think I'm legally obliged to get that fixed. And this town fuckin' _sucks_." After getting his gas (and a grape pop – he didn't drink booze, wasn't old enough, but dammit he needed some sugar and caffiene) he drove over to the nearest repair shop.

"Yeah, we can have this fixed pretty fast. We've got an empty guest room, you can stay here." Placido nodded – sounded like a good deal to him. "For free if you can cook." After paying the man (for the repair, he was a damn good cook) he retreated into the building.

A boy greeted him. Glorious, flowing red hair, shining emerald eyes, hair tied back with a jade ribbon, long, slender legs, and –

The boy grinned. "You're another guest, right? Mom isn't around on weekends – work stuff – so Dad lets people stay around if they'll do the cooking, cause he can't cook worth a shit." He walked over – he couldn't have possibly been older than 15, but he carried himself like an adult. "Lucciano Rossi. You?"

The two spent most of the night playing videogames on Lucciano's beat-up PS2 (weird ones, for the most part – who the fuck had a copy of Digimon Rumble Arena 2? – but fun anyways. ) After another match of the entertaining (if odd) game, Lucciano turned to him, eyes flashing.

"You know um, can you keep a secret? Please? I'm afraid to tell Dad, and –"

"Of course I can. I'm not going to be in town much longer anyways."

"I'm gay."

"Really?" Placido smiled. "So am I. What –" He was cut off when Lucciano closed the gap between their lips. The boy was very needy, clinging to him tightly, and Placido couldn't help but wonder if it was his first kiss.

Lucciano pulled back. "Uhh um d-do you like me?"

"...yeah."

"Will you come to Church with me on Sunday, then? I mean, if you're –"

"Of course. Let me just email my dad." Placido was hardly a Christian, but the way the boy was looking at him...

It was still a bit of a surprise to Maron that his son had decided to stay in Topeka for a week, but as that week started to stretch longer and longer, it started to become a reality to him – his son had met someone in Topeka, found God, and was now working there at a car shop.

"Strange kid. I'll miss him."

Song 7: Prehistoric Reptiles of the Sea and Air – Dinosaur Rap

Lucciano was a pretty small Archaeopteryx, all things considered. Still, he was less awkward in the air than most of his kin, and he'd admit that he rather enjoyed the competition for him – there were a fair few males courting him, more than a couple of the females he'd met on his flights. To be fair, he was quite showy, but he really wasn't sure _why _the males courting him were courting, well, _him_. To be fair, he was a girly enough archae, but still.

His most recent suitor interested him far more than the others – silver and white feathers and scales and brilliant red eyes – and its courtship dance, strange as though it was, was far more alluring to him than any of the drab mediocre dancers her four other suitors.

The creature landed in front of him, squawking – asking him for permission to mate with him, which was better than a couple of the others, he distinctly remembered having to flee from some of them. But no – this one was graceful, this one was classy, this one was unique in all the right ways and as lovely as anyone.

He squawked back a yes, the archaeopteryx equivalent of "you're my boyfriend, yes, now fuck me like some shitty bodice ripper novel."

Song 8: Stacy's Mom – Fountains of Wayne

"Hey, Patty, mind if I hang out with you after school?" Lucciano grinned.

"Sure!" Patty grinned. "Bring your swimsuit – Mom said they finished cleaning the pool! She even said she'd hang out with us!" She grinned. "She's the best mom ever."

_She's hot, too_, Lucciano thought. "Of course!"

Later that day, the two could be found playing tag in the pool (not very successfully, tag was just not a game meant to be played with two people). It was all going really quite well until Patty's mom, Placido, showed up, jumping into the pool.

"How are you two?"

Lucciano really just ended up blubbering out some babble, and Patty laughed. "We're having tons of fun! Lucci's just being hilariously awkward!"

"You have the funniest friends."

Unrequited love is hard, and no one understands.

Song 9: Unbreakable Tie (Opening Theme [Short Ver.]) – Shoji Meguro

Being a member of Ylliaster was hard. Despite his powers over the future, Lucciano had no way of knowing what would happen next, had no way of predicting the future. If he closed his eyes and let himself drift, he'd be lost, lost in _time _and _reality_, in _what _and _where_ and _how_. Everything was tense, harsh, and he didn't understand it, but he still worked for it, worked to bring Light to the shadowy world. He sometimes wasn't even sure if he had a will of his own, subservient to Z-ONE as he was, but it didn't matter.

Because he had Placido, and not only did he love Placido, the graceful Emperor had changed his life – had told him the one Truth, that they were fulfilling Fate, and that as long as they did, the pain – the pain of loss and suffering and confusion and hopelessness – would fade.

And it helped, being held in his warm, soft arms, hearing him whisper sweet nothings in his soft, uplifting voice. They didn't have much – Fate hadn't blessed them with much – but the quiet flowers in his room some mornings, the silent glances, the words, it was all enough.

Song 10: The Last Night

Placido had been sitting on a bench outside of his apartment complex when Lucciano – a close friend of his, living three floors up – stumbled up to him. He was quiet, but Placido swore he heard sniffling, and looking closely, saw tearstains on his cheeks; he was clearly doing his best to stay calm, but

"Um, I just came out here to say goodbye, Placido". He spoke softly, haltingly, and it was almost painful to hear. "I'm tired of feeling like this."

His sleeves were rolled up and Placido could see scars, some reading our words Lucciano had cut into his own skin – something he had never noticed before. Sure, Lucciano had always worn long sleeves, but he'd been doing so since he was very young; he said he preferred wearing them. Placido reached out, grabbing his wrist, his fingers tracing the lowest of the scars quietly.

"Lucciano, it's okay. Please. You don't _have _to feel like this, goddamit, you don't _have _to feel alone, Luce. Please, just -"

"Placido, my parents. They don't care, they don't understand, they think I'm going through a goddamn _phase _or some bullshit excuse because they can't fucking accept that I'm not the exact picture perfect, graceful, refined, married-some-stupid-dumbass-chick-and-had-2.5-children son they've got in their disgustingly thick skulls. _My parents._ You understand me better than the people who brought me into this shitty fuckup."

"Calm down, Lucciano. They don't accept you because of your sexuality, right?"

"...how did you know?" He looked genuinely surprised. Placido couldn't help but laugh, if only a little; it would've been obvious even without the poorly concealed stash of gay pornos and images (some hand-drawn, Lucciano was a hell of an artist, enough of one to make the picture he found of he himself being fucked by his younger friend all the more awkwardly arousing).

"I found your porn cache once when I was over at your place. Gotta admit, I can't _imagine _how you kept it hidden from your parents, under the mattress is the shittiest place to store it, you know, Luce."

"Holy fucking shit you did not oh god this is _sooooo _embarrassing oh my god I should just kill myself now, shit," and Placido smiled, because he didn't sound serious about killing himself, not like he had before.

"Nah, no worries. Some of it was pretty sexy, you have _got _to tell me where you're buying that stuff. And as for the pictures of me He sighed. I can't say I'm hugely happy about them, but what you do in your own time is your business, and honestly?" He smiled. "I like you a lot, Lucciano, and if you're willing, I wouldn't mind dating. Perhaps, if you're patient," and he snickered, "we could try some of what you drew out."

Blushing furiously, Lucciano nodded, hugging Placido tightly.


	3. Aporia and Paradox

AN:  
>Fact: I am absolutely guaranteed to get dino romances here. Why shuffle why. It's actually pretty fun though…<br>Warning: Number 3 is bordering on M-rating. And it's got rape.  
>Warning: Numbers 6 &amp; 7 are BOTH about suicide. What the hell shuffle.<br>8 was supposed to be Valentine's Day from Linkin Park but at that point I was like NO MORE ANGST.  
>My iPod was feeling like the ANGST NEXUS here.<br>I cheated on 9, too, because how _do_ you write a romance with the song Jesus Freak? You don't that's how.

Song 1: Herbivores from the Cretaceous Period [post-Mesozoic Extinction Event AU][141]

You both remember the end, the biting cold that should've killed you, your miraculous survival with the help of that big, fluffy, warm beast that you are now travelling with. It scared you, both of you, but you understood the need for warmth. There were four in the group – a little toothy one, the big fluffy one, and the two of you, small and scaly Protoceraptops.

When mating season came about, the golden one stayed behind, but you, white-and-red, went out looking, honked out a call, to no avail. There simply wasn't anyone left. You returned to their cave looking dejected and glum, and found the other lying there, looking at him with this look, _why did you even bother looking anywhere else? It's only us, you know…_

You snuggled up against him, and the next day made him your mate.

Song 2: Gone Forever [3 Days Grace][126]

Aporia isn't lying, he isn't. He'd swear it by Z-One, he's better off without Paradox. Paradox is angry and volatile, dangerous, he'd yell and scream at him. Even when he sits alone, looking through old photos, tears in his eyes, he's happy that Paradox is dead. It's just an alternative kind of happiness. There's no way he could be _missing _him.

And when it gets to be too much and he goes out and gets in fights and fucks random strangers and screams Paradox's name into the night, he's still not missing him. Not one bit. When he comes home and Z-One seems more comforting than angry and he cries on his shoulder and screams he's not sad or scared, he's better off.

He knows it.

Song 3: Wish I Had An Angel [Nightwish][153]

Aporia is incredibly innocent, end of the world or not. To an extent, it turns you on. He's the only virgin in your group – Z-One's slept with Antimony, everyone knows that, and you had a boyfriend back before all this happened, cute and blonde and so very vulnerable when the end came – and he's so despairing, so hopeless.

But he infuriates you. You want him and you can't have him. But he's beautiful and you have thoughts about him, thoughts about pinning him down and tearing off his clothes, taking him hard and forcing him to realize your love. You never act on them.

Then one day, you find an old bar and drink and drink. And you stop caring. It'll hurt like never before, at least for him, but you do it anyways, taking him over the table as he screams and begs you to stop, and it only turns you on.

Song 4: Ginko's Theme (Sad) [P2P Soundtrack][124]

You survey the destruction and it's hideous and yet beautiful, and it fills you with an almost comforting hopelessness. His hand is in yours, the only warmth in this infernal cold, and you can see piles of bodies, stacked about haphazardly, the stench of blood thick in the air.

You look to Paradox, nervous, feeling the presences that make you up rebelling in fear, Lucciano in particular shaking and mumbling to himself. But the blood and gore and stench and rubble isn't just scary – it has this grace to it, and when Paradox wraps you tight in his arms, whispering sweet nothings protectively, it fades away.

The hopelessness stays, of course, but you hardly mind it. It's as comforting as his hands on your body.

Song 5: All The Stars In Texas [I guess everyone loved Crashtown anyways][Ludo][215]

Everyone is dead here. Oh, they're breathing, sure, but their minds and eyes and hearts are blank. It doesn't bother you when you hold the gun to their heads as Paradox rummages through the vault, taking from them their money and jewels and everything else they've hidden away. With a grin, he picks up one of the only safes he couldn't crack then and there, and you get your getaway vehicle ready. And in moments, you're off.

No one can catch you. You don't really enjoy this – you'd like to have a home, wake up snuggled against your partner with a big smile on your face, soft and warm and simple. But he's different. There's this shine in his eyes, and it's the most beautiful thing you've ever seen, wild and untamed. You can't let go of that.

You met when you shot his dad. He hugged you close and followed you, saving your ass when the cops came after you when you learned he had a gun of his own.

There's that untamed flame in his eyes, that wonderful greed that makes him grin so widely, that lean, powerful body and sharp-witted mind, and you might've thought you were in control at first, but you know better now. You would do anything for him.

Song 6: Hurt [Thousand Foot Krutch](201)

Back then it was just the two of you, and you were scared. _Aporia is so much stronger than me_, you thought, _I'm so hopeless_. You were scared to be alone, and although you'd see a loneliness in his eyes that hurt you sometimes, he didn't ever seem to be.

You were heading to one of your favorite places to scavenge for food when he dropped the ball, when you could see the real him.

"…'Dox, could you do me a favor?"

"Of course." In this world, favors were so very reserved, but it was never like that for the two of you. You trusted each other more than that.

"Shoot me."

You blinked and shook your head. "This is a joke, right?"

He shook his head. "Please. I've tried this on my own, but I couldn't do it." And the way his voice cracked there, it hurt so much that you couldn't help but hug him close, and you could feel his heartbeat. What would you do if you hadn't met him? If he'd done it? You'd never have fallen in love.

"…No." And you kissed him on the lips, because you hurt too much to be on your own.

Song 7: It's Never Too Late [Three Days Grace][165]

At first, he was just a friend. When he started to talk about taking his life, you'd try to talk him out of it, telling him that the old world just wasn't coming back and they couldn't live the same lives they did before, but they could make new ones. But back then you wouldn't have made big sacrifices for him.

But it became deeper and deeper, and when you kissed and when you did more than just that, you could still feel that want, that _need_¸ for death, shaking in his body. And over time you started to realize that you would give more and more to make it go away, until everything you had was his, could be his, if he would only love himself like he does in your dreams.

"Everything'll be okay. It's alright."

"I don't even want to be alive."

He never did kill himself, but when he died in that last duel you knew it was what he wanted.

Song 8: Please Don't Go [Mike Posner][151]

In those times everything seemed so temporary, and even when you brought people into your bed half the time you'd wake up and they'd be gone. Normally you didn't care. But Paradox, he was different. You didn't want him to go, you wanted him to stay with you forever. When you told him that he smiled and nodded.

"I feel the same way, but we'll see what tomorrow brings."

"If tomorrow might make you leave, let's make tonight last forever."

He kissed you, needy, and you let him, submitting to his will in a way that was comforting for you. It was nice, for a fleeting moment, to let go of your absolute control. You weren't always the one who felt that, of course, at times he'd need it as badly as you did right then.

When you woke up the next morning he was there, his arms warm around you.

Song 9: Waking Up In Vegas [Katy Perry][177][again because WE NEED MOAR HAPPY]

In retrospect, it was pretty unbelievable how you two had gotten here. Antimony and Z-One had wanted some "alone time" (because everyone wasn't perfectly aware they were fucking) and thought you two should "go have some fun." And so you and Paradox found yourselves gambling away the truly incredible amount of money you had. Ylliaster didn't need all the cash they had anyhow (not that even a full night of high stakes gambling could put a dent in it).

Of course, if there's one thing Vegas is good for outside of gambling, it's getting really drunk. You could hardly see anything, and you knew Paradox wasn't exactly sober.

You hadn't even reached your hotel when you pinned him up against the wall, licking at his lips, needful. Thankfully, he was sober enough to at least get you back to the hotel room before he started to pull off your outfits.

"I assume the title of 'couple _from the future_' has been passed on to us now?" he joked the next morning, and you couldn't help but laugh.

Song 10: Dream Big [Ryan Shupe & the Rubberband][the happy has FINALLY found us! :D][120]

_Z-One's insufferable happiness is starting to get to me_, Aporia thought as he tried to untangle himself from Paradox's arms. _I'm actually starting to enjoy things again_.

He told his partner as much when he woke up, and he almost seemed to smile. "Yeah, as long as we have each other, things are pretty good, aren't they? It's not like we can't fix this. Z-One's a god, isn't he? We can't lose with that kind of power on our side. I know it."

"…what do we do when we _do _win?"

Paradox snorted. "Obviously we adopt a dog and name it Princess, then open a cake and dress boutique using our _magical gay powers_."

You were still laughing when you got to the throne room.


End file.
